This present invention relates in general to pliers for forming an anatomical contour of the contact area on dental matrix which is used in conjunction with dental restoration techniques.
The treatment of interproximal cavities requires the dental practitioner to remove decayed enamel and dentin along the side or interproximal wall of a tooth which is nested adjacent, and often contacts, healthy teeth. In general, a matrix band is placed around the tooth in order to confine the filling materials to the removed portion of the tooth which is to be filled. At this point, an anatomical contour of the contact area is normally shaped to match the tooth contour.
In the past, the pre-formed convex sectional matrix need the use of dental separator ring to stabilize and tighten the dental matrix, unfortunately these at times collapse. The collapse of the matrix band does not allow a proper formation or morphology of the restorative material in the tooth. Other methods are by forming and burnishing a concave surface on a flat circular matrix bands manually by the dental practitioner, which are time consuming and difficult to perform a constant shape.
In view of the above, it would be desirable to replace the method of how to contour the contact area. However, this will require a metal forming tool capable of forming a anatomical contour similar to the morphology of the contact area of a tooth.
Various types of metal forming tools are known. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 1,304,720 discloses pliers for shaping the band material about the tooth to be fitted. The pliers have a pair of jaws, each of said jaws being formed with a laterally extending clamping beak.
U.S. Pat. No. 978,430 shows a tool for forming dental crowns. The tool comprises a concave jaw and a convex jaw which carry tooth-like dies for shaping a crown to final form.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,513,513 teaches a tool capable of producing a channel In sheet metal with little or no damage to the surface of the material.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,084,935 teaches a multipurpose, pliers-like tool for use in dentistry. Among the many features of the tool are two pairs of complementary male and female corrugating elements, a wire bending arrangement including an elongated groove and an elongated rib receivable in the groove, and a channel which can receive, in part, the free end of the cone.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,814,574 B2 shows a tool for forming and removing bumps on dental repositioning appliance. The tool comprises a pair of handles each with a curved jaw member lying in the same plane as the handle. The handles are subapically and pivotally connected. A dome shaped cylindrical bump forming projection is positioned at the tip of the first jaw. A circular shaped throughbore is situated in the tip of the second jaw.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,258,047 B1 discloses pliers that are ergonomically designed to reduce incidence of muscle fatigue. The tool comprises first and second arms that are pivotally interconnected utilizing an appropriate mechanical fastener. Further, a bearing is generally located between the first and second arms to hinder friction between the first and second arms and facilitate movement of the pliers between open and closed conditions.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,210,845 B1 teaches a tool that provides a hinge that has a pin and a recess which both center the parts and more evenly spread the wear experienced by such parts. The tool comprises of two pieces each with a handle, a jaw, and a hinge portion between the handle and the jaw, with the hinge portion of each pliers part together forming a hinge. The jaws can be provided with a cutting edge.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,880 shows a pliers-like tool in which each jaw is again provided one with crimping forming surface having a convex arch shaped ridge and the second jaw having a concave arch shaped cavity opposite the ridge for crimping a substantially straight endodontic file.
None of the above tools is designed to form a contact area shaped on a dental metal matrix band.